The Florida Gator Hoops faced a familiar friend in John Pelphery's and his South Alabama squad. The Gators who are known in recent years for making an early exit from the Big Dance delivered a crushing win in the first round of the NCAA tournamount in familiar Jacksonville. Their next game is against Wis.-Milwaukee who damaged many brackets yesterday by taking out Oklahoma.
- Gator Sports: "It started with ill-advised shots, poor ball movement and some barking between Florida coach Billy Donovan and point guard Taurean Green. It ended with slam dunks on the break, swished 3-pointers and pretty bounce passes in the lane."
- USA Today: "It has been five years since Florida advanced past the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, reaching the Final Four in 2000. It doesn't get any easier this weekend. After beating South Alabama 76-50 on Thursday and never trailing, the Gators will play Wisconsin-Milwaukee, a No. 11 seed that demonstrated last season it was ready for the national stage. Thursday, the Panthers upset Oklahoma 82-74."
TBO: "Still, Pelphrey believes this year's Florida team - which uses eight or nine players - has the tools to advance deep in the tournament.'They have the components to compete in every single basketball game they're going to play in,' Pelphrey said. 'It's just that time of year. You've got to play well. ? But they have the ability to compete with anybody in the country."